Sunstorm Rising
by GriffynRyder
Summary: Carter has just become a vampire and is thrust right in the middle of the 'war' against the Volturi. With the help of some familiar faces and new friends, she might just be able to change the fate of the world. Jasper x Alice prevalent. *ON HOLD!*
1. Chapter 1

_**AN:**__ Characters from Twilight will come in later on, but for now, I'm going to establish my own characters. Reviews and flamers welcome! Also, reviews will determine when the next chapter goes up. Enjoy!_

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Twilight Saga or its characters. They are the property and creations of Stephenie Meyer._

Carter reached up and swept her bangs back out of her eyes before making sure the line was hooked securely to the cliff face. Satisfied that the rope was safe, she reached up and found her next handhold. Humming to herself, she climbed another ten feet before attaching the next clip to the cliff face. Half an hour later, she reached the top and hauled herself up over the edge. Standing up, she stretched and gazed out over the magnificent view that spanned out in front of her. Smiling, she closed her eyes and let cool wind blow across her sweaty face.

All of the sudden, something hard slammed into her back with incredible force. She gasped in pain as she felt her ribs crack and fear as she hurtled over the edge. Whatever hit her, had hit her so hard, that the speed with which she fell yanked out all of the clips. She screamed as she realized what was about to happen, but her scream was cut short as she collided with the ground, hundreds of feet below where she fell from.

Carter whimpered with pain as her vision turned red. She tried to move but couldn't. As blood ran from her mouth and nose, she realized her spine was broken. She moaned with the realization, praying that she would pass out.

_Lord_, she thought, _please let this end quickly. Take me soon, so that I can escape this pain._

A silhouette appeared through the haze clouding her vision. A soft voice that seemed to be made of music came from the person.

"There, there," he crooned, for the voice was obviously male. "Your pain will be over soon." Carter moaned again and closed her eyes, still praying that it would be over quickly. She felt a slight pressure on her wrist, then a searing pain. She screamed again, and jerked violently, trying to get away from the monster.

Suddenly, the person was gone, and violent sounds of ripping came from a few feet away. Carter moaned as the fire in her arm grew hotter, but managed to roll over and see what was going on. A man was attacking the person who had hurt her. The fire grew in intensity suddenly, and Carter screamed. She closed her eyes and concentrated with all her might on praying. A few seconds later, the horrible sounds stopped, and Carter began to smell a sickeningly sweet smoke coming from where the fight had happened.

She coughed and screamed as the cough made her pain worse. Another person appeared in her hazy vision. Another voice filled with music penetrated the roaring in her ears.

"Don't worry," a different male voice said kindly. "I will help you through this as much as I can. I am afraid that there is nothing I can do to stop the pain, the venom has spread too far." She felt another light pressure on her arm, and the man took her hand and squeezed it gently. "I am Samuel, and I will stay with you until this is over… Can you hear me?" he asked softly, his voice full of concern.

It was all Carter could do to nod, but she managed to whisper, "Thank you, Samuel."

"Of course," Samuel said. "Now, I'm sorry but I have to hurt you more if you are to survive." She felt another sharp pain in her neck, and she screamed again, as her world faded into darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN:** No reviews yet so please let me know how I'm doing! Anyway, enjoy!

When Carter awoke, everything was clear. The smells, the sights, the sounds; everything. She inhaled in shock, and realized that she could even taste the world around her. Then she frowned, and inhaled again. The action felt wrong; there was no relief in the air that whistled down her throat. She considered this for a moment, and then leapt to her feet when she heard movement off to the side.

"It's alright," said a voice from the trees. It sounded vaguely familiar. She tensed, trying to recall where she had heard that voice before.

Then she remembered.

"Samuel?" she asked, her brain grasping at the foggy memories of her last moments. The sound of her voice startled and intrigued her. She contemplated its musical sound for only a moment; she was quickly distracted when she heard Samuel speak again.

"Yes," he answered, stepping cautiously out of the woods, guarded relief in his voice and on his face. "It is me… I won't hurt you." He raised his hands in front of him and stepped a little closer.

"I—I know, I remember," she stammered, confused about how she knew he was being truthful. "I don't understand… What's happened to me?" She stopped abruptly, dazzled by the incredible beauty of Samuel's face.

"You have been changed," he said slowly, his hands still raised, gauging her reaction. "You're a vampire now."

"What?" Carter gasped, her eyes wide. "But vampires don't exist! That's not possible!" Even as she said it, she knew again that Samuel was telling the truth. Her brow furrowed at the thought. "I know you're not lying to me, I can feel it. Why can I feel that you're being truthful?"

"Vampires do exist," Samuel said calmly. She was momentarily distracted by the grace of her own movements as she took a step towards Samuel. She was jolted back to her senses when he continued. "Some of us are given… gifts in our new life. You may be able to sense when you are being lied to." He lowered his hands slightly, and smiled gently at her. "If you will trust me and not attack me, I'll show you."

"Why would I attack you?" Carter's voice crept up an octave, in surprise.

"Newborn vampires are usually not able to control their instincts very well," he said soothingly, his voice calm and measured "To show you the truth I would have to touch you, and most newborns react very badly to being touched." His golden eyes held her gaze while he spoke; she could literally _see_ the truth burning in them.

"I wouldn't hurt you," Carter said slowly. "You saved me. And I want to know the truth…" Her face crumpled in confusion. "Although I still don't understand how I know you're not lying." She looked up at him, eyes wide and worried.

He took a slow step toward her and held out his hand to her, still a good five feet away. "I can show you all the answers, I promise. It is my gift to show the truth, like I told you that it might be your gift to see truth." He smiled again and stepped closer. "Let me show you."

She nodded and moved to take his hand. Right before they touched she hesitated. "This won't hurt will it?"

He laughed, his voice glorious and beautiful. His golden eyes twinkled happily at her. "No, it won't hurt, I promise."

"Ok." Carter took a deep breath and firmly grabbed his hand. "Show me."

Samuel smiled widely and wound his fingers through hers. "Your wish is my command, milady." And as he spoke, the world around them shifted and began to change. Carter gasped as an entirely different world appeared before them.

"Watch," Samuel commanded, his voice soft, "and I will do my best to explain everything."


	3. Chapter 3

_**AN:** **Please let me know what you think about this. The next chapter should be up in about a week or two. Anyway, happy reading! **_

"No one knows how our kind began. There are many theories, but none have been proven. Even the most ancient of vampires have no idea. So we just accept our existence, and most of us fulfill our 'natural' role in the world." He snarled 'natural' and the scene finally took form.

A… vampire, (Carter's thoughts shied away from the word), was wandering in a dark place. It was a male, his pale skin glinting softly in the moonlight. Carter turned to Samuel to ask a question, but he just shook his head and nodded toward the scene as it changed and a new one began unfolding before them.

"Most vampires are nomads, roaming the northern parts of the world in relative anonymity. But, there are some of us who live in the south, the places where the sunshine is never-ending." Samuel smiled ruefully, and the scene of the vampires walking with humans in a cloudy city shifted. Sunlight took the place of clouds, and another pair of vampires took the place of the others.

Carter blinked in awe as the sunlight turned the vampires' skin into a glittering coat of diamonds. "Whoa," she breathed, smiling at the beauty of the pair. "Do all vampires do that?"

"Yes," Samuel laughed. "That is why most of us choose to stay in the north, under the cover of the clouds. The less human attention we attract, the less danger we are in of attracting the Volturi."

"Volturi?" Carter asked, the better part of her mind still marveling over the glittering beauty of the vampires in front of her.

"A royal family of sorts," Samuel said, smiling at her unconcealed awe. "They enforce the only rule in my world, the world that is now yours as well... Keep the secret." He turned back as the scene began to shift again.

A beautiful ornate chamber, like the one you would associate with castles and fairy tales, appeared around them. Three thrones sat in the middle of the massive room.

"Aro, Marcus, and Caius." As he said each name, a vampire would appear in one of the thrones. Two of them had pitch black hair; the third's hair was white as snow. Their eyes were as red as the blood they surely drank. "The Ancients of the Volturi," he continued as more vampires materialized around the three. "They have been together so long that they consider themselves a family. For thousands of years they have enforced that one rule, making sure that we remain unseen by the human population. Only recently did many of us discover that they had been overstepping their bounds, acting as collectors of powers and people." Samuel's face twisted in disgust, and the scene changed to reflect his feelings.

A snowy field appeared before them with two groups of vampires standing across from each other, clearly enemies. The Volturi Samuel had showed her were there, leading an army of grey-robed warriors. The opposing force was much smaller, patched together of many different vampires, each standing resolute and ready for whatever was about to happen. As she and Samuel watched, nearly 20 massive wolves materialized out of the woods behind the small group.

Carter gasped in surprise, crouching defensively. Samuel squeezed her hand and smiled. She stood swiftly, embarrassed that she had forgotten what she was seeing wasn't real. She looked back to the wolves, confusion covering the embarrassment on her face.

"They are werewolves… shape-shifters, if you will." He said, answering her unspoken question. "Their ancestors merged their soul, with those of wolves. They were talented in the spiritual ways when one of their own forced their leader out of his body and took over." The white haired vampire called Aro had begun to cross the field, his arms held open in a nonthreatening manner. "Thus, what you see there."

"I don't understand."

Samuel nodded towards Aro as he retreated across the field. Both armies waited anxiously as he and the other three ancients formed a circle and began to council. "After that battle within their own tribe, they ran into vampires and found that they were able to fight them. That became their reason for existing." The ancients turned to face the others in their army and spoke of battle. Across the field desperation and resignation colored the defensive stances of those who opposed the Volturi army. "A few years ago they made an interesting alliance with the Cullen coven." He nodded towards the desperate army." One of their leaders imprinted, or became permanently tied to a member of their coven." Samuel's golden eyes shone in admiration, and the world swirled around them again, zooming in on part of the Cullen's army.

"After the Volturi were exposed to be corrupt, they lost some of their influence." He smiled wryly. "Much like the Catholic church during the Renaissance." He glanced over at her. "What?"

"The point?" she asked, arching her eyebrow at him.

"Ah, yes. So they lost some of their influence, but their power stayed strong," he smirked at her again, "well, at least strong enough to enforce the rule of anonymity. They no can no longer rule over us like they did, though, and this is enough to change many things about our world." His voice filled with pride as he looked back to the Cullens who now stood in front of them, frozen, like characters paused on the television. "They are the ones who brought about the change to our world, who now lead the 'fight' against the Volturi and those who side with them."

Carter stared in wonder at the figures before her, each beautiful and powerful in their own way. Her gaze was drawn to their eyes, which, unlike the Volturi's blood-red irises, were the same glowing gold as Samuel's.

"Their eyes-" she murmured; she could feel Samuel watching her, assessing what she did and thought. She turned to meet his gaze. "Why are their eyes different?"

He smiled gently and squeezed her hand. "That is what makes them different, what makes us willing to follow them." He gestured grandly to the figures still frozen before them, his smile growing more beautiful with each second. "They found a way to defy our nature, to live with the humans of this world, not murder them." His smile was blinding now, his golden eyes aglow with… awe, it seemed.

Samuel turned to her, his happiness lighting up his whole face. "They drink the blood of animals instead of that of humans. They teach others of our kind this peaceful way of life, just as Jasper," he nodded to a blonde vampire covered in scars, "taught me."

His smile faded slightly and the world returned to normal. The Cullens disappeared and the trees replaced them. Samuel gazed silently at their hands, still twined together. He stroked the back of her hand gently, and then hesitated. His eyes darted to hers nervously, clearly wondering if this was alright. She nodded and smiled, squeezing his hand and gesturing for him to continue.

"I would like to teach you as well," he said slowly. "But I will not force this on you."

She met his eyes squarely, and nodded again, her grip on his hand firm. "I don't want to kill humans."

Samuel held her gaze, his eyes intent. "This won't be easy. It takes years to perfect control. There is a great possibility that you might come across a human and lose yourself." He paused, watching her reaction. "You might kill someone, even if you don't want to."

Seeing the truth in his words, Carter took a deep breath, calming herself. She pushed her fear back and nodded. "I understand," she whispered. "But it will still be better than killing someone on purpose every day. And I will pray for strength," she continued, determination making her voice stronger, "so that maybe I will be able to keep from killing humans." She stopped suddenly, her face contorted with confusion. "Now what?"

Samuel laughed, loud and long, his laughter like bells, more beautiful than anything Carter had ever heard. "That," he said, squeezing her hand and chuckling. "That is the easy part."

**_AN: Hope you enjoyed it!_**


	4. Chapter 4

*Excerpt from Carter's Diary*

It has been two months since Samuel changed me… two hard months filled with pain and struggle, a fight against my own nature. Even so, I honestly cannot remember a happier time in my life. Because I never have to sleep, every second of my time has been consumed with learning. My - studies, if you will, have been as follows: working to control the blood-lust that burns in my throat, mastery of the arts of tracking and hunting animals and other vampires, and learning about the gift I possess, as well as those talents wielded by other vampires.

Samuel is an excellent teacher, always patient, always kind. Only within the past week have I been able to ignore the burn well enough to truly appreciate how much strength it takes to deal with a newborn vampire. I now realize how moody and unpredictable I have been since my conversion. It amuses me that Samuel says I am showing an incredible amount of self control compared to other newborns; I can't imagine being more out of control than I have been in the past months. It is a testament to Samuel's self-control that he's been able to put up with me at all.

And there's more… to us, I mean. A few days after I had gained some semblance of control over myself, Samuel told me how strong emotions affect vampires. He explained how we become frozen, physically and emotionally after we have been changed, and how only extremely strong emotions can change our temperaments. He had the strangest look on his face as he spoke, almost like he was scared. When I finally got him to admit what was bothering him, he told me that he'd experienced one of these strong emotions when he changed me. Then he hesitated, took a deep breath, looked me in the eyes, and told me that he had fallen in love with me.

I saw the truth shining from him and it was like everything that had been missing from my life just fell into place. In that one moment of clarity, I knew that I loved him, too. After that, everything became a little confusing; I don't know how I managed to stammer out that I loved him, too, but somehow I did. And then, everything changed for us. I mean, things went on fairly normal, but we became a – couple, I guess you could say. He tells me that he once heard one of the Cullens describe a vampire relationship as something like gravity, moving when the other moves, thinking the same. The strong emotions that change us so permanently tie us together in a way that no human can comprehend. We differ in only one way from most other vampire couples: we are going to get married before we… sleep together. It may seem funny since I'm a vampire now, but I still have my faith. Samuel says that Christian vampires, or vampires of any faith are rare. Faithful vampire couples are even more scattered, but some do exist.

Still, it will be awhile before I can go anywhere near a wedding chapel without trying to kill the minister. But, I guess that gives me something to look forward to.


End file.
